Water Services
Functions
- Operation and maintenance of public water supply schemes
- Operation and maintenance of public wastewater schemes
- Provision and maintenance of public conveniences
The water service functions of town sanitary authorities were transferred to the County Councils with effect from 1st. January, 2004 but Thurles Town Council continue to operate and maintain water services in Thurles under an agreement made with North Tipperary County Council. Capital works such as extensive improvements to water services infrastructure is undertaken by North Tipperary County Council.
Water Supply
The sources for the Thurles Water Supply are wells at Ladywell, Tobernaloo, Brittas Road, and Loughtagalla and an impounding reservoir at Knockalough.
Water from Ladywell, Brittas Road and Loughtagalla is pumped to the Water Tower while the supply from Knocknalough feeds by gravity into the Water Tower. Water from the Tobernaloo source is pumped directly into the distribution main at Ard na Croise.
Water Treatment facilities are provided at Knocknalough, The Water Tower and Tobernaloo and 4,000,000 litres water is supplied daily.
There is a statutory requirement on the Council to ensure that all drinking water meets stringent quality standards. Tests are carried out daily to ensure that the water meets the requirements under the EU Directives.
Thurles Town Council provides the funding for the operation and maintenance of water supply schemes.
A new Regional Water Scheme for Thurles town and its environs is at design stage and will cost in the region of €35m. Further details on the Scheme may be obtained from Water Services Section, North Tipperary County Council, Civic Offices, Limerick Road, Nenagh (067) 31771.
There is an ongoing programme of leak detection and repair to the network in order to minimise wastage.
Disruptions to water supplies:
The reasons for disruptions to supply are many – some are within the control of this Council and others are as a result of unforeseen events.
In the event of disruption water will be restored as a matter of priority with as little inconvenience to customers as possible.
Sewerage Scheme
The Waste Water Treatment Plant is located at Ballycurrane, Thurles with pumping stations at Kavanagh Place, Brittas Road and Monadreen.The Council is obliged to protect the environment from adverse affects of the collection, treatment and discharge of urban wastewaters, the treatment of wastewaters from certain industrial sectors and the disposal of sludge.
Thurles Town Council provides the funding for the operation and maintenance of the sewerage system.
North Tipperary County Council has appointed a Contractor to upgrade the plant and equipment at Ballycurrane Waste Water Treatment Plant in order to provide greater capacity. The cost of the project is in the region of €2.4m.
Water and Sewerage Charges
In line with international practise and emerging EU policy Ireland is moving towards making the full cost of water and waste water services to all sectors transparent, and securing full cost recovery in the case of non-domestic users. To facilitate this a policy framework has been developed to comprehensively apply the polluter pays principle in regard to water services infrastructure and operations. This framework provides for:-
- Collection of capital contributions by local authorities from non-domestic users in a structured and uniform manner and in accordance with the polluter pays principle.
- Operational costs in respect of the non-domestic water and waste water services to users to be recovered in full.
- Completion of the metering of all non-domestic users by 2006.
- Continued funding in a transparent way of the cost of providing water and waste water services to domestic users through the capital budget and, in the case of operational costs, through the Local Government Fund, in a manner consistent with efficiency and environmental sustainability.
Local authorities in North Tipperary introduced a new sewerage charge of 40 cent per cubic meter with a standing charge of €100.00 on all meters from the 1st. January, 2007. The 2007 charge for commercial water is €4.50 per 1000 gallons or €0.99 per cubic meter.
Payment of Charges
Demands for water charges are generally issued before the 30th April and 31st October each year.
Payment should be made within 1 month of receipt of demand.
Should payment not be received on time, a Notice requiring payment within seven days, followed by a further notice and then a Final Notice are issued. Thereafter, a Disconnection Notice will issue where appropriate or legal proceedings will commence.
Connection Fees
- Water Connection: €850
- Sewerage Connection: €50
The above are minimum connection fees. Prices can vary depending on the extent of works involved.
Application forms are available from the forms website. All applications must be accompanied by a site map outlining the development in red together with the appropriate fee. A road opening licence will be necessary in the event of a road crossing to connect to the mains. Applications for road opening licences must be made to North Tipperary County Council, Area Office, Rossa Street, Thurles 0504 21153.
If you have any further queries in relation to water services connections please contact Thurles Town Council at 0504 21433.
Public Convenience
An automatic public convenience has been provided by the Council at the Car Park, Parnell Street, Thurles.
